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Uniform Solutions: How Your Textile Company Can Help You Go Green

Water is the world's most precious resource. Humans rely on clean water to survive, to stay healthy, and to maintain proper hygiene. On the flip side, wastewater pollutes the environment and spreads illnesses among vulnerable populations.

Unfortunately, over one billion people around the world lack access to fresh water. Almost three billion have trouble finding a reliable water source. Meanwhile, companies and their employees generate gallons of wastewater every time they throw dirty uniforms in the washing machine.

And that's not the only environmental challenge facing businesses. Every time a customer or employee throws out a napkin, they add to the world's overburdened landfills, leading to more greenhouse gases, less biodiversity, and the poisoning of our soil and groundwater.

Saving Water through Better Cleaning

Many businesses rely on uniforms—restaurants, healthcare facilities, retail outlets, automotive garages, etc. Most of them ask employees to wash their own clothes, while some use in-house laundry facilities. Both solutions fall short of acceptable environmental standards because both create unnecessary amounts of wastewater.

In order to reduce their footprint, businesses should switch to textile companies that offer efficient, eco-friendly laundry services. That's because industrial-scale apparel washing processes reduce water usage at every stage of the cleaning process. You can save roughly 25 gallons of water per week per worker! That's about 300 billion gallons of water per year!

Think about those numbers for a moment. That would be enough to meet the water needs of nearly half the world's population for an entire day. And such savings can be achieved simply by using the right washing methods.

By contrast, home washing uses up to three times more water…and in-house business cleaning facilities don't fare much better.

Reusable Textiles

As soon as your reusable products are ready for washing, the textile company will pick them up, clean them, and return them for round two, three, and beyond! Companies that want to promote sustainability and practice stewardship can also lease reusable garments, a solution that helps conserve our treasured resources.In addition to adopting more sustainable apparel washing processes, businesses should also look for ways to reduce their trash footprint. One simple solution is to replace disposables with reusable products. Instead of paper napkins, switch to linen napkins. Instead of paper towels, wipe surfaces down with dish towels, bar towels, and glass towels.

Clean Green Certification

Knowing what to do is one thing; knowing where to look is another. So how do you find which textile service offers the most environmentally-friendly cleaning processes?

It's actually quite simple. You'll want to choose a company that has a Clean Green certification to its name. Only the most sustainable, eco-conscious laundries have the privilege of displaying the Clean Green sticker, which verifies that they're able to save a sufficient amount of both water and energy.

By replacing inefficient laundry practices with cleaner, greener methods, businesses can do their part to protect the planet's resources. While they're at it, they'll also distinguish themselves from the competition, boost team morale, and save money. That's sustainability any leader can believe in.

Jerry Martin is the Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Prudential Overall Supply. This company is an industry leader in reusable textiles and uniforms. Prudential Overall Supply is Clean Green certified through TRSA. Through his work, Martin has helped establish TRSA's international standard for the Clean Green certification program.